Nurse He Xianggu is Injected with Harmful Drugs at Hunan Mental Hospital Because She Practises Falun Gong

2008-10-30

On July 10th, 2008, Hunan Province Women and Children's Hospital (WCH) officials took Falun Gong practitioner Ms. He Xianggu, a nurse employed at the hospital, to the Hunan Brain Hospital's Psychiatric Division, formerly called the Hunan Province Mental Hospital, where she has been held for more than three months. Since October 10th, 2008, staff members at the psychiatric hospital have violently injected her with drugs that damage the central nervous system. Ms. He Xianggu didn't take any food after the forced injection. Her current condition is grave cause for concern.

Ms. He Xianggu

He Xianggu secretly taken to a mental hospital prior to the Olympics

47-year-old He Xianggu was born in You County, Hunan Province. She used to suffer from left vertebral artery circulation insufficiency, chronic fatigue, dizzy spells and vomiting. She took medications for a long time, but they did not cure her. To make it worse, she fractured her right ankle in late 1997, which did not heal properly, making it necessary for her to walk with crutches. She began practising Falun Gong in April 1998, and has since then conducted herself according to the principle of Truth-Compassion-Forbearance. Soon, all of her unhealthy conditions disappeared, and she threw away the crutches. Her temperament also improved tremendously.

Ms. He was detained several times for her belief as soon as Jiang Zemin and his power group began persecuting Falun Gong in July 1999. Her superiors sent her to the mental hospital in 2000 where she was held for more than five months. The persecutors there injected her with long-acting haloperidol decanoate, which caused general malaise and stiffness throughout her body. She felt extremely anxious and felt a compulsion to repeatedly stand up then sit down, and sit down then stand up. She also felt nauseous and vomited.

Officers from the Wujialing Police Station in the Kaifu District, Changsha City arrested her the evening of April 23rd, 2008. She went on a hunger strike to protest the treatment she was receiving. Officials from the Changsha City Forced Labour Committee sentenced her to two years in the Baimalong Women's Forced Labour Camp in Zhuzhou City, Hunan Province. This was the fourth forced labour verdict issued to her since the persecution of Falun Gong began in 1999. She was taken to Baimalong on May 10th, 2008; but camp officials found her to have coronary heart disease during a routine medical examination, so they refused to admit her.

Officials from her place of work, WCH and those from the 610 Office1 agents pressured the camp officials who then reluctantly accepted He Xianggu. She was released on medical parole, emaciated, on July 10th, 2008. Camp officials told her family and officials from her place of work to take her home.

Her family planned to take her back to their home town, You County. Before this could happen, Hu Hui, WCH Party Committee Office Head, and the 610 Office agents held a covert meeting and subsequently offered to take He Xianggu back to Changsha City. They promised the family, "We absolutely will not take her to a mental hospital this time!" The family believed the officials and agreed to their offer. The persecutors reneged on their promise and took He Xianggu to Ward 4 at the Psychiatry Division of Hunan Province Brain Hospital the evening of July 10th, 2008, the same day when she was released from the labour camp. That hospital is located in Tujiachong, Changsha City.

Mental patients at the hospital were allowed family visits. Due to intervention from WCH Party Committee Secretary Zhang Hui and Office Head Hu Hui, two people monitored He Xianggu, a non-mentally ill person, 24/7. WCH paid their salaries. Family visits were prohibited, except that her relatives could see once after two months. Hu Hui and other officials accompanied the family during the entire visit. WCH Head Zeng Chunlin is personally responsible for the practitioner's persecution.

When He Xianggu's family confronted the officials of breaking their word, Hu Hui stated, "We'll bring her out right after the Olympics." The family went to Hu Hui again after the Games had finished. This time she said she was waiting for approval from the 610 Office. The family made a third trip to Changsha in September, hoping to pick He Xianggu up, but persecutor Hu Hui said they had to wait until after the Paralympics. The Paralympics ended more than a month ago, and yet, He Xianggu is still detained.

Violence and potent injections

October 10th marked the third month of He Xianggu's ordeal at the mental hospital. Ward 4 head Luo Shaoping told officials at the Ms. He place of work, WCH to pick her up. But the officials at WCH refused, even after repeated interactions between officials at the two hospitals. It is unclear what transpired during these conversations, but after a firm refusal from the WCH, Luo Shaoping had a discussion with director of the brain hospital. They decided to use potent drugs on He Xianggu and began injecting her with Risperdal.

Risperdal is indicated for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder; and its strong side effects include uncontrolled movements and irregular heartbeat. He Xianggu struggled, but five people pinned her down to give her the injection. The five are: Luo Shaoping (male), Ward 4 head; Chen Zizhen, the staff doctor; male nurse Yang Yanming; female nurse Hu Yan, and Guo Linxiao. When He Xianggu inquired the name of the drug, Luo Shaoping and Chen Zizhen refused to tell her. Chen Zizhen simply said they must do it, or they would lose their jobs. Staff doctor Cheng Zhuying was also involved in abusing He Xianggu.

He Xianggu went on a hunger strike to protest such blatant disregard for her well-being. When the medical team at Ward 4 became aware of her hunger strike, they publicly announced they had imported liquid nutrition supplements that cost more than 200 Yuan2 a day per patient, and they would not let anything happen to her.

Both WCH and Mental Hospital officials have kept a tight lid on what is happening. Ms. He Xianggu's current circumstances are worthy of a thorough investigation.

We call on the international community to extend their help in ending the persecution and restore freedom to He Xianggu.

Officials responsible for the abuse and gross mistreatment under the persecution:Zhang Hui: Current WCH Party Committee Secretary after the 2008 Chinese New Year, former deputy director of Hunan Province Department of Health Workers' Union. He is in his 40s and a main participant in Ms. He Xianggu's abuse.

Zhang Hui

Hu Hui: Office Head of the WCH Party Committee. She is about 40 years old, and has personally abused and mistreated He Xianggu under Zhang Hui's instructions.Zeng Chunlin: WCH HeadLuo Shaoping: male, in his 40s, Ward head 4 at the Hunan Province Brain Hospital, former attending physician, specializing in substance abuse and rehabilitation. He has led other doctors and nurses to inject He Xianggu with large doses of Risperdal since October 10th, 2008.